So I’m now halfway into my second season of Buffy (for like, the? bazillionth time).? And not to be rude but, um,? Ms. Meyer?? ? You ain’t got nothing on Whedon in the tragic romance department.? That Joss–his brain must be twisted in an uber-twisty kind of way.? I’m just saying.? I mean, how else do you come up with a storyline where the vampire slayer falls in love with a vampire named Angel?? A vampire, who, due to an ancient gypsy curse, had his soul restored and has been suffering for the past? century until he meets and falls in love with Buffy, the one person who should be his arch-nemesis?? And then,? just because he? experiences a moment of pure happiness (think true love and teenage hormones and you’ll get the picture of how thatoccurs), the curse is broken and he reverts back to his former soulless, evil, torture-loving alter ego, Angeles.? You know, the one who (and I paraphrase) offered an ugly death to everyone he met for over a hundred years–and he did it with a song in his heart.?

So obviously Buffy, being? the slayer and all,? has to try to stop him.? But you know, it’s one thing to break up with your boyfriend, and another? thing entirely to turn him into a big pile of dust by stabbing him through the heart with a sharp pointy stick.? You think that’d be tear-jerking enough, right?? ? Oh no, not for Whedon.? Like some gruesome Big Bad from the Buffysphere, he couldn’t stop until our still-beating hearts were completely ripped from our chests and stomped on a few hundred times.? Because,? at the end of Season Two,? the curse and? Angel’s soul are restored—just moments? before Buffy has to kill him to save the world.? Talk about future emotional baggage.? So, Joss?? You may be genius-like and all, but please, do me a favor–don’t? go writing my future anytime soon.

Seriously, though, for those of you who have never watched Buffy before?? It’s worth a look.? I mean, even beyond the tragediest of tragedies, Whedon has? tons to offer.? The Buffy-banter alone–some of the funniest, hippest dialogue ever produced, bar none–makes this show entirely too addicting.? Yes, the special effects in the first season are unbelievably low-budge, but it just adds to the? campiness of the whole experience.?

? And how can you resist the supporting cast?? Xander, for instance, the nerdy side-kick who says stuff like,? “I laugh in the face of danger.? Then I hide until it does away,”? and “? I don’t know what everyone’s talking about–that outfit doesn’t make you look like a hooker.”? And then there’s always,? “There’s a party in my eye socket, and everyone’s invited.”? (Um, okay, so that last one is sort of a ‘had to be there’ type deal.)

And bitchy, popular Cordelia was always good for a line or two–”What is? your childhood trauma?” comes to mind.? Oh, and “Willow–nice dress.? Glad to know you’ve seen the softer side of Sears.”

I could seriously be writing for a week straight if I tried to include all of the great Buffyisms out there.? But since I think the kiddage would object, I’ll just throw out a few more favorites that pop immediately to mind.? If you’re? a Buffy fanatic, feel free to leave your favs in the comment section.

Buffy:

“Can you vague that up for me a little more?”

“I think I speak for all of us when I say…huh?”

“I may be dead, but I’m still pretty—which is more than I can say for you.”

?

Spike is always good for some hilarious lines, but one of my personal favorites is when Buffy commands him to sum up what he’s doing in five words or less.? Spike, counting each word out on his fingers, says, “Out. For. A. Walk….Bitch.”

?

Or here’s this excerpt from a conversation with Angeles about killing Buffy:

Oz:? ? ? ? But at least you’re not a rat any more.? Call it an upside.

But, I do have to say, Meyer’s got? Whedon on the endings. Unless you’re into ‘lonely-ever-after’.? ? Because when it comes to? giving us what we want in terms of a romantic conclusion?? ? Well, let me put it into Buffyspeak. Basically, on a scale of one to ten—Whedon sucks.

7 Responses to “Twilight versus Buffy–still slaying me after all these years”

Great post! I love “Buffy” and remember hearing an NPR interview in which a TV critic was listing her top 5 dramas of the year and she included “Buffy” to the surprise of the host. She said the dialogue and writing were on par with the best shows on TV.

Please don’t kill me or vow to never speak to me again, but I’ve never seen a single episode of Buffy. Although, I think I did see the movie which is what the TV series is based on, right? But, you’ve sold me. I’d like to borrow your DVD’s when you’re finished with your Buffy-a-thon.

Great article I’m just watching season two for what must be the tenth time and I must say that the way they managed to do it with suck low budgets still amazes me.

BTW the other part where Buffy beats twilight is Buffy actually thinks about how her relationship with angel might not be the best Bella just goes into a relationship with Edward full throttle. And lets the bastard step all over her.

Buffy: Does it ever get easy?
Giles: You mean life?
Buffy: Yeah. Does it get easy?
Giles: What do you want me to say?
Buffy: Lie to me.
Giles: Yes, it’s terribly simple. The good guys are always stalwart and true, the bad guys are easily distinguished by their pointy horns or black hats, and, uh, we always defeat them and save the day. No one ever dies, and everybody lives happily ever after.
Buffy: Liar.

Great post! I just stumbled upon your blog earlier today while doing a search for “Cindy Crawford’s Meaningful Beauty” and what do you know, your “letter to Cindy” entry popped up on google. The “sucks balls” part drew me right in. After that, I glanced over at your previous entries and when I saw “Twlight” and “Buffy”, I knew I was hooked. Thanks for preventing me from being duped from the supermodel’s infomercial, and for giving me a good laugh to boot. From one fellow Buffy/Twilight junkie to another, here’s hoping to read more of your blogging soon!

I loved this post (kind of late coming to it). I actually own the book “The Quotable Slayer” with all of the best Buffy quotes.

One of my favorite Scooby Gang banters (doing it from memory, so forgive any mistakes):

Buffy: That’s Willow! Old Reliable.
Willow: Oh, thanks.
Xander: No, she meant it in a good way! You’re like a geiser.
Willow: That’s Old Faithful.
Xander: Isn’t that the one with the dog…
Willow: That’s Old Yeller.
Buffy: Xander, don’t help me.